Analisis Kemampuan Pemecahan Masalah pada Materi Sistem Koordinat Kartesius Ditinjau dari Perbedaan Pola Pikir Divergen dan Konvergen Siswa Kelas VIII SMP

This study aims to determine how the ability of mathematical problem solving in the Cartesian coordinate system material in terms of differences in divergent and convergent thinking patterns in class VIII students in semester 1 of SMP Negeri 1 Kediri in the 2019/2020 academic year. This research is a descriptive study using a quantitative approach. The instruments used in this study were the thinking character questionnaire instrument and the problem solving ability test instrument. The thinking character questionnaire instrument was used to select research samples that met the criteria for divergent thinking and convergent thinking. In this study, 11 students thought divergent and 12 students thought convergent. The problem-solving ability test instrument was used to determine the problem-solving ability of the research sample as measured by Polya's assessment guidelines, namely (1) understanding the questions, (2) planning solutions, (3) solving problems, and (4) checking. The results showed that there was no difference in the average score of problem-solving abilities between students with divergent and convergent thinking patterns, namely 66.19 and 66.73. The only difference lies in the steps each student takes. This shows that different mindsets do not affect a person's ability to solve a problem.

The Effect of Acute Aerobic Exercise on Divergent and Convergent Thinking and Its Influence by Mood

Abundant evidence shows that various forms of physical exercise, even conducted briefly, may improve cognitive functions. However, the effect of physical exercise on creative thinking remains under-investigated, and the role of mood in this effect remains unclear. In the present study, we set out to investigate the effect of an acute bout of aerobic exercise on divergent and convergent thinking and whether this effect depends on the post-exercise mood. Forty healthy young adults were randomly assigned to receive a 15-min exercise or control intervention, before and after which they conducted an alternate use test measuring divergent thinking and an insight problem-solving task measuring convergent thinking. It was found that exercise enhanced divergent thinking in that it increased flexibility and fluency. Importantly, these effects were not mediated by the post-exercise mood in terms of pleasure and vigor. In contrast, the effect on convergent thinking depended on subjects’ mood after exercise: subjects reporting high vigor tended to solve more insight problems that were unsolved previously, while those reporting low vigor became less capable of solving previously unsolved problems. These findings suggest that aerobic exercise may affect both divergent and convergent thinking, with the former being mood-independent and the latter mood-dependent. If these findings can be replicated with more rigorous studies, engaging in a bout of mood, particularly vigor-enhancing aerobic exercise, may be considered a useful strategy for gaining insights into previously unsolved problems.

Scientific Creativity in Psychology

The present research investigates the cognitive and conative profile underlying scientific creativity in psychology. An innovative creativity test including both divergent and convergent thinking was used. Intelligence and personality were also measured. The sample consisted of 121 social science students. Intelligence played a major role for scientific creativity in psychology. With regard to personality, openness and negative agreeableness favored additionally scientific creativity in psychology. In future research, the profile of scientific creativity could be compared with profiles of artistic creativity and everyday creativity.

Evolution of Brain Network Connectivity in the Prefrontal Cortex During Concept Generation Using Brainstorming for a Design Task

The research results presented in this paper explore the temporal changes in central regions of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) during design brainstorming. Design mobilizes a range of cognitive processes such as problem analysis and framing, concept generation, decision-making, visual reasoning and creative problem solving. Concept generation is supported by an iteration of divergent and convergent thinking. The process of brainstorming focuses primarily on divergent thinking. Measurement techniques from neuroscience were used to quantify neurocognitive activation during concept generation using brainstorming during a design task. Correlations in brain activation were used with graph theory to describe brain network connectivity and present the temporal evolution of network centrality in the PFC during brainstorming. The results reveal shifts of network centrality between the right, medial, and left PFC, suggesting possible shifts in the dominant cognitive functions between divergent and convergent thinking during design brainstorming. The alternations of centrality and connectivity between hemispheres provides a consistent mapping with the theory of dual reasoning process in prior design cognition studies. This empirical study with ten graduate engineering students offers initial results to further explore connections between brain network connectivity and cognitive processes when brainstorming during a design task. It provides new evidence to examine existing theories of design.